Nov. 11, 1987: With just two hours notice, 20,000 people showed up in Justin Herman Plaza to watch U2's free "Save the Yuppie" concert.

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Nov. 11, 1987: With just two hours notice, 20,000 people showed up in Justin Herman Plaza to watch U2's free "Save the Yuppie" concert.

Nov. 11, 1987: With just two hours notice, 20,000 people showed up in...Justin Herman Plaza to watch U2's free "Save the Yuppie" concert.

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Fred Larson / The Chronicle

Word was spread by radio stations, which learned about the 1 p.m. concert at 11 a.m. School was in session, but thousands of teens still cut class.

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Word was spread by radio stations, which learned about the 1 p.m. concert at 11 a.m. School was in session, but thousands of teens still cut class.

Word was spread by radio stations, which learned about the 1 p.m....concert at 11 a.m. School was in session, but thousands of teens still...cut class.

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Fred Larson / The Chronicle

Bono with bassist Adam Clayton. This was the band's "Amish era," where at least one member wore a flat-brimmed black hat at any given time.

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Bono with bassist Adam Clayton. This was the band's "Amish era," where at least one member wore a flat-brimmed black hat at any given time.

Bono with bassist Adam Clayton. This was the band's "Amish era," where...at least one member wore a flat-brimmed black hat at any given time.

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Fred Larson / The Chronicle

Recording for the documentary "Rattle and Hum," the band sang several covers including "All Along the Watchtower" and Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready." The crowd was in good spirits. What could possibly go wrong?

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Recording for the documentary "Rattle and Hum," the band sang several covers including "All Along the Watchtower" and Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready." The crowd was in good spirits. What could possibly go wrong?

Recording for the documentary "Rattle and Hum," the band sang several...covers including "All Along the Watchtower" and Curtis Mayfield's..."People Get Ready." The crowd was in good spirits. What could possibly...go wrong?

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Fred Larson / The Chronicle

Bono pulled out a spray paint can and turned on the Vaillaincourt fountain, a controversial art piece titled "Quebec libre!" that was installed in Justin Herman Plaza in 1971. He wrote "Rock 'n Roll, Stop the Traffic."

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Bono pulled out a spray paint can and turned on the Vaillaincourt fountain, a controversial art piece titled "Quebec libre!" that was installed in Justin Herman Plaza in 1971. He wrote "Rock 'n Roll, Stop the Traffic."

Bono pulled out a spray paint can and turned on the Vaillaincourt...fountain, a controversial art piece titled "Quebec libre!" that was...installed in Justin Herman Plaza in 1971. He wrote "Rock 'n Roll, Stop...the Traffic."

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Fred Larson / The Chronicle

Concert promoters downplayed the incident, and the next day Chronicle story said there were several uniformed and plainclothes officers in the audience -- none of whom made a move to stop the singer.

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Concert promoters downplayed the incident, and the next day Chronicle story said there were several uniformed and plainclothes officers in the audience -- none of whom made a move to stop the singer.

Concert promoters downplayed the incident, and the next day Chronicle...story said there were several uniformed and plainclothes officers in...the audience -- none of whom made a move to stop the singer.

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Chronicle archives

SF mayor Dianne Feinstein responded the next day.

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SF mayor Dianne Feinstein responded the next day.

SF mayor Dianne Feinstein responded the next day.

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Chronicle archives

The band actually said "oops" in this non-apology apology, which was followed by multiple excuses, portraying Bono's actions in heroic terms.

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The band actually said "oops" in this non-apology apology, which was followed by multiple excuses, portraying Bono's actions in heroic terms.

The band actually said "oops" in this non-apology apology, which was...followed by multiple excuses, portraying Bono's actions in heroic...terms.

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Bono was cited later in the week. Among possible punishments: Scrubbing city buses.

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Bono was cited later in the week. Among possible punishments: Scrubbing city buses.

Bono was cited later in the week. Among possible punishments:...Scrubbing city buses.

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Chronicle archives

Herb Caen's response two days after the incident. Love it.

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Herb Caen's response two days after the incident. Love it.

Herb Caen's response two days after the incident. Love it.

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Deanne Fitzmaurice / The Chronicle

Nov. 14, 1987: U2 played for a three days later for a sold-out crowd at the Oakland Coliseum. Tensions were high. The band was at their commercial peak and their outlaw image was enhanced by the pending charges.

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Nov. 14, 1987: U2 played for a three days later for a sold-out crowd at the Oakland Coliseum. Tensions were high. The band was at their commercial peak and their outlaw image was enhanced by the pending charges.

Nov. 14, 1987: U2 played for a three days later for a sold-out crowd...at the Oakland Coliseum. Tensions were high. The band was at their...commercial peak and their outlaw image was enhanced by the pending...charges.

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Deanne Fitzmaurice / The Chronicle

One quick tangent before we return to the narrative. I want to interview one or more of these U2 fans. If you see yourself (or a friend) in the front row and can prove it, PLEASE e-mail me at phartlaub@sfchronicle.com.

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One quick tangent before we return to the narrative. I want to interview one or more of these U2 fans. If you see yourself (or a friend) in the front row and can prove it, PLEASE e-mail me at phartlaub@sfchronicle.com.

One quick tangent before we return to the narrative. I want to...interview one or more of these U2 fans. If you see yourself (or a...friend) in the front row and can prove it, PLEASE e-mail me at...phartlaub@sfchronicle.com.

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Deanne Fitzmaurice / The Chronicle

Bono didn't take long to address the controversy. He essentially went with the "Don't you know who I am?" defense. See the next slide ...

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Bono didn't take long to address the controversy. He essentially went with the "Don't you know who I am?" defense. See the next slide ...

Bono didn't take long to address the controversy. He essentially went...with the "Don't you know who I am?" defense. See the next slide ...

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Deanne Fitzmaurice / The Chronicle

Bono was joined on stage by surprise guest Vaillancourt, who flew from Quebec to California for the concert. The artist defended Bono. ''Graffiti is a necessary disease ... I've come here to say 'No problem.'"

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Bono was joined on stage by surprise guest Vaillancourt, who flew from Quebec to California for the concert. The artist defended Bono. ''Graffiti is a necessary disease ... I've come here to say 'No problem.'"

Bono was joined on stage by surprise guest Vaillancourt, who flew from...Quebec to California for the concert. The artist defended Bono....''Graffiti is a necessary disease ... I've come here to say 'No problem.'"

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Deanne Fitzmaurice / The Chronicle

Bono and Vaillancourt pick up rollers and write "Stop the Madness" on a stage backdrop. "Good for him," the artist said. "I want to shake his hand. People get so excited over such a little thing."

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Bono and Vaillancourt pick up rollers and write "Stop the Madness" on a stage backdrop. "Good for him," the artist said. "I want to shake his hand. People get so excited over such a little thing."

Bono and Vaillancourt pick up rollers and write "Stop the Madness" on...a stage backdrop. "Good for him," the artist said. "I want to shake...his hand. People get so excited over such a little thing."

But then I started researching the winning topic, and got more and more excited about the U2 free concert kerfuffle imbroglio at Justin Herman Plaza. I was 16 at the time, and read every word surrounding the controversy regarding Bono’s spray-painting of the Vaillancourt Fountain. I was supposed to be at the Oakland Coliseum show four days later, but was grounded. Luckily my future print colleague Joel Selvin and photographers Fred Larson and Deanne Fitzmaurice chronicled everything for me.

Hope you enjoy the gallery. I’m looking forward to your memories of the concert in the comments. A few thoughts (and two more images) below.

* Want to make someone in their early 40s feel really old? Just tell them that “The Joshua Tree” was released more than 25 years ago.

*As I mentioned in the vote for this subject, I was on U2′s side when this happened. But to give some perspective to my state of mind at age 16, I was also very vocal that Judd Nelson deserved an Academy Award. “Rattle and Hum” proved to be bloated and the Vaillancourt Fountain moment was arguably the band’s peak of pretentiousness. To their credit, they bounced back with “Achtung Baby” and deserve their continued success.

* Once again, Chronicle music critic Joel Selvin is the voice of reason. A longtime U2 supporter, he called bulls*** on the band in his review of the show where Vaillancourt showed up. This was not a popular sentiment in 1987. Everyone under 25 was in Bono’s side (myself included), and every letter to the editor I read supported the act.

* SF police inspector Joseph Toomey can be seen as one of the foils in this, but he’s a good cop. Here’s an example of some of his better work.

*If you own the “U2 U2″ California license platedisplayed in this gallery, please contact me at phartlaub@sfchronicle.com. I’d love to hear if you still have the plate.

* Below is my favorite article from this series (so sad we never saw Bono scrubbing Muni buses), plus the front page from the day after the free concert. This gives some perspective how big the event was. Kennedy is appointed Supreme Court justice, a Van Gogh sells for $53 million and the Warriors actually win a game. And U2 still dominated the news …

* I also added a YouTube video. Here’s a link to a search that includes homemade video of most of the concert. (Thanks to commenter shamrocking for the tip!)

PETER HARTLAUB is the pop culture critic at the San Francisco Chronicle and founder/editor of The Big Event. He takes requests. Contact him at phartlaub@sfchronicle.com. Follow him on Twitter @peterhartlaub. Follow The Big Event on Facebook.